Weaving loom shuttles



Filed July 14, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR: HA N5 G072 MA 141. KM

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INVENTOR: HANS GU72 mil [bully AGE/VT June 20, 1967 H. GOTZ 3,326,245

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I N VENTOR. HANS 6072 AGE/VT United States Patent 3,326,245 WEAVING LOOMSHUTTLES Hans Giitz, 1035 am Langen Berg, Steinhagen, Westphalia,Germany Filed July 14, 1964, Ser. No. 382,614 (Claims priority,application Germany, July 17, 1963, G 38,207 5 Claims. (Cl. 139-196) Thepresent invention relates to weaving looms and particularly to shuttlestherefor.

In spite of improvements made in various parts of automatic looms, gravedefects have been found due to the increased operational speed. Thesedefects have not hitherto been remedied in spite of much work havingbeen done in this connection.

The wear and tear of shuttles is comparatively great and a shuttle canusually only be used for about three months. An object of the inventionis therefore to reduce the degree of wear and tear on shuttles and todiscover the reasons for this wear and tear. The wear and tear ofshuttles is not only a disadvantage as regards their life but alsocauses faults during weaving, such as broken threads for example. Theadjustment of a shuttle in the shuttle guides is not quite correct sincethe shuttle must be slightly lifted for a throw and must also be guidedsomewhat towards the reed. These adjustments cannot be maintained. It ispreferable to throw the shuttles accurately along the path of movementof the reed and of the batten. An exact guiding of the shuttles during aquick shooting movement is not possible since the hard impact of thelathe causes the shaft to spring upwards so that the lathe is somewhattilted sideways by the movement of the batten. Numerous measures havealready been taken in order to prevent wear and tear on parts of loomssuch as reeds and shuttles. Reeds have for example been produced fromreed blades of special material so as to render them unbreakable.Furthermore reeds have been provided with rubber or plastics bonds inorder to secure them in a flexible manner and to protect them frombreakage. In order to decrease the amount of wear and tear on shuttles,shuttles of the most varied plastics materials have been used. Shuttleshave also been manufactured from harder materials inorder to reduce theamount of wear and tear on the reed side.

All these measures have had little or no success since the wear and tearwas not only not avoidable but even partially increased. When the reedsare made of very strong steel they do not break so easily, but theblades are correspondingly bent at certain locations in accordance withthe travel of the shuttle so that faulty goods again result. Whileshuttles of plastics material are harder and harder rear guards ofwooden shuttles prove to possess somewhat greater stability, they aremore often the cause of bent or broken reed blades.

A particular disadvantage occurring in conventional looms consists inthe fact that chatter marks are often produced on the rear shuttleguards. These chatter marks show the limit of the loom speed.

A series of reasons has been given to explain the formation of chattermarks on looms. The formation of chatter marks on looms is connectedwith the speed of rotation and the shedding of the loom. In a slowrunning loom there is no formation or only a very rare formation ofchatter marks. In an early shoot there is a more intensive formation ofchatter marks than in a later shoot, the shed opening here being ofgreat importance. Since various factors play their part in the formationof chatter marks, it is not possible to state accurately the exact speedof rotation or width of the weave at which this occurs. The fact hashowever been recognized that chatter marks are caused by a faultyshuttle throw.

In spite of accurate guiding of the picking stick, the shuttle box frontand the guide rod, the shuttle is deflected by its conically taperingform when it meets with or touches the first warp of the still smallshed. This causes its tip to hit against the reed and the conical shapethen again causes it to be deflected in the other direction so that itdoes not run directly along the reed but is spaced therefrom by adistance equal to the amount of deviation of the shuttle caused by thefirst impact or as great a distance as the shed allows. As the battenadvances the shuttle is again caught by the reed shortly before itleaves the shed. This repeated impact against the reed causes damageboth to the shuttle and the reed, chatter marks are produced on the rearguard of the loom and thread marks on the surface.

On high speed looms, the shuttle is always thrown earlier, the shed mustbe held higher and the travel of the batten must be extended. This couldbe rendered easier by enlarging the shed but as the batten or sley isstill fairly forward this enlargement has no effect. Moreover a largeshed has the disadvantage that the shuttle is deflected very far fromthe reed.

A projecting reed blade cannot cause the formation of chatter marks onthe shuttle since a reed blade would break upon striking the shuttle.

The shuttle is thrown into the shed tip and thread marks are caused bythe fact that the threads are not held rigid but are caught and cut inothe wood. Threads only make marks of their own thickness while the reedblades produce broader cuts in the form of chatter marks of 2 to 8 mm.Thread marks mainly occur on the front of the shuttle because this movesinto the shed tip with greater force.

The wear and tear shown as chatter marks and thread marks on a shuttleaffect the speed of the shuttle to such an extent that it enters theshuttle casing very irregularly, sometimes earlier and sometimes later.This irregular travel makes necessary a stronger adjustment of the throwwith its consequent disadvantages. The wear and tear means that theshuttles must be replaced more often and this results in unnecessaryadditional work and a lower production rate.

In order to increase mill efliciency it is thus desirable to preventwear and tear on the shuttles. This will result in improved running ofthe loom and in fewer repairs to the loom and shuttle and fewer cases ofbreaking of the thread and weft.

If a conventional shuttle is shot at great speed into an only slightlyopened shed, it hits against the threads which meet at an acute angle.The threads are tensioned and the shuttle is deflected from the tip ofthe shed on to the reed so that the shuttle with its conical tapered endis thrown along thereed and is further deflected. According to the sizeof the shed the course of the shuttle is kept at only a few millimetresfrom the reed by means of the shed. Before the shuttle leaves the shedit is gripped by the running batten or sley and by the shed which isagain closing and is pressed against the reed. Different types of impactare caused in this manner but usually the shuttle makes impact with itstip and then rebounds so that it moves unevenly forward until it issteadied by the shed which is again becoming smaller. As the shuttlestrikes the reed, chatter marks of different width are produced on theshuttle independently of how the shuttle strikes against the reed. Whenthe shuttle hits against the reed it is thrown into the shed tip so thatthread marks are produced on the upper portion of the shuttle guard.

I believe that the essential difficulties encountered in the throwingand return of the shuttle as also in the guiding of the shuttle resultfrom the fact that the shuttle is conically tapered and pointed at bothends so that the 3 same surfaces and shapes which serve to guide theshuttle are also used for the throw of the shuttle in the twodirections. I have therefore constructed a shuttle in which the surfacesor shapes for the two-directional shuttle throw are completely distinctfrom the surfaces and shapes for the guiding of the shuttle and bothdifferent surfaces and shapes are constructed so as to be best suited totheir task.

According to the invention a shuttle for looms is characterised in thatthe back of the shuttle is extended in a straight line on either sideand is provided at its ends with sloping surfaces for shuttle guidingand in that the ends of the body of the shuttle are set back from theextended ends of the body and are provided with slopes serving for thedivision of the respective sets of warp threads in the shed andpreferably with rounded heads for the two-directional shuttle throw. Theextension of the back of the shuttle in both directions results in aconsiderable increase in the amount of guide surface, in particular forthe position in which it rests against the reed, and rocking movementsof the shuttle as it travels through the shed are thus partially if notcompletely obviated. The sloping surfaces which are substantiallypointed and tapering at bot-h ends of the extended rear wall contributeto an easy run of the shuttle through the shed. The surfaces on theball-shaped heads on both ends of the body of the shuttle for thetwo-directional shuttle throw, which are completely distinct from theaforementioned guide surfaces, result in substantially improvedcooperation of the batten and the picking stick since the latter is ableto roll off the rounded surface during both directions of movement ofthe shuttle and a considerably larger surface comes to rest. A boring ofthe tip of the picking stick with consequent rapid destruction of saidstick is completely avoided and the raising of the shuttle by impact andthe shooting thereof into the shed in an undesired direction due to thepositive insertion of the tip in shuttles in the recess of the picker ashitherto known is avoided.

In accordance with the invention, the rear wall of the shuttle isprovided with a continuous recess or recesses or the like arranged ateach end of the shuttle to receive the extension.

A shuttle according to the invention is further characterised in thatthe rear wall of the shuttle is constructed of tough material such asplastics material, buffalo hide, woven synthetic resin or similarmaterial.

The extension of the shuttle may be in one piece in the form of acontinuous slider or in the form of separate inser-table extensionpieces.

The extension or extension pieces are secured against displacement inthe recesses of the shuttle by means of screws or the like.

The extension arranged on the rear wall of the shuttle may also beprovided with an underlayer of rubber, plastic or the like serving as acushion.

The extension of the shuttle consists of tough material such as buffalohide, plastics material or the like, for example of a loop of wire orsimilar material covered wih-t plastics material or the like.

The front of the shuttle which is constructed with a rounded headconsists of steel or like material and may be covered with a toughmaterial on the running surface.

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood, referencewill now be made to the accompanying drawings which show someembodiments thereof by way of example and in which:

FIGURE 1 diagrammatically shows the bottom of a conventional shuttlewith the usual formation of chatter marks,

FIGURE 2 shows a side view of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is the same view as in FIGURE 1 but the chatter marks are onone side only,

FIGURE 4 is a diagrammatic plan view of a conventional shuttle showingchatter marks formed on the top,

FIGURE 5 is a diagrammatic side view of a shuttle 4 according to theinvention, wherein extension pieces are provided at both ends,

FIGURE 6 is a plan view of a shuttle according to FIGUREfS,

FIGURE 7 is another embodiment of a shuttle in which the extension partsare curvilinear and arranged at both ends of the shuttle,

FIGURE 8 is a plan view of a shuttle according to FIGURE 7,

FIGURE 9 is a side view of another embodiment of shuttle according tothe invention, in which the back is constructed as one piece and is ofbuffalo hide,

FIGURE 10 is a plan View of a shuttle according to FIGURE 9,

FIGURE 11 is a further embodiment of a shuttle according to theinvention in which the front surface and the extension are constructedas one piece,

FIGURE 12 is 'a plan view of FIGURE 11, and

FIGURE 13 is a portion of a sloping shuttle adapted to the shed.

The shuttles shown in FIGURES 1 to 4 are of a known type in which thereis formation of chatter marks to a greater or lesser extent. The shuttle1 has a front and rear tip 1" and a shuttle back 1', on which chattermarks are shown at 2. According to FIGURE 1 the chatter marks 2 extendover the whole width of the shuttle back 1. As may be seen from FIGURE 2the chatter marks 2 in the shuttle back 1' have reached a depth of up to1,500/u. In FIGURE 3 the formation of chatter marks 2 on the rearsurface of shuttle 1 is to one side while in FIGURE 4 there is alsoformation of chatter marks 2 on the front of the shuttle 1.

FIGURES 5 and 6 show a shuttle according to the invention, the shuttleback 1' being provided at the front and at the rear with recesses 1". Insaid recesses 1' extension portions are arranged on either side and areconnected with the actual shuttle 1 by means of screws 4 or the like.The extensions 3 may be of buffalo hide or plastics material or thelike. In the shuttles according to the invention here shown the tips 1"of the shuttle 1 have been replaced by specially constructed roundedheads 5. These rounded heads 5 are set back with respect to the tips ofthe extended rear wall.

According to FIGURES 7 and 8 curvilinear extensions 6 are arranged onboth sides of the shuttle instead of the straight extension portions 3,said curvilinear extensions being covered with a plastics covering at6'. The extensions 6 are secured in a manner similar to that of theshuttles according to FIGURES 5 and 6.

According to FIGURES 9 and 10, the rear shuttle wall 1 is constructed asone piece and is composed, for example, of buffalo hide. The shuttleback 1 is also connected to the actual shuttle 1 by means of screws orthe like. The shuttle back 1' is so constructed as also to replace theextensions 3 and 6 arranged on either side according to FIGURES 5 and 8,i.e. the shuttle back 1 is constructed in one piece and terminates atboth ends in extensions 1". According to FIGURES 11 and 12 an extension7 with integral head end is provided in place of the rounded head 5 andthe extension 3, the integral head of said extension 7 having awedge-shaped leading end. This wedgeshaped leading end is extremelyeffective for dividing the threads. This construction also improves theguiding of the shuttle. The extension 7 with the Wedge-shaped leadinghead end forms a constructional unit which is of tough material such asbuffalo hide, non-wearing plastics material, or woven synthetic resin.

As shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 9 and 10 each of the extensions of each pair ofextensions 3 and 1", respectively, has a semi-elliptical leading edgeand a thickness, measured from the rear wall, which is substantiallyless than the radius of the adjacent ball-shaped conical end.

The invention also makes possible the extension of a shuttle on bothsides by approximately 50 mm. on each side. The end may then be madevery thin, i.e. the shuttle 1 and rounded head 5 are flattened at oneside (see FIG- URE 13).

Furthermore the extension 6 may be so arranged that the middle line isdisplaced and a side cushioning effected. This cushioning effect may beincreased by an additional cushion of rubber or the like.

A shuttle according to the invention has the following advantages:

The extension of the back of the shuttle means that when the shuttle tipstrikes the warp there is no twisting of the shuttle since the positionof the shuttle against the reed is ensured and there is no possibilityof the shuttles twisting as is the case with tapering orconically-shaped shuttles. The travel of the shuttle through the shed isthus no longer irregular and bucking but straight and smooth. Thissmooth travel considerably decreases wear and tear on the shuttle andmay even exclude it entirely. The life of the shuttle is thusconsiderably increased, the cost of new shuttles is saved and moreimportant still, the time spent on maintenance of the loom is reduced toa minimum.

The fact that the wear and tear on the side walls of the shuttle is soslight means that subsequent location of the holding devices is nolonger necessary. Since a rounded surface is substituted for the pointedtip of the shuttle the guiding of said shuttles is improved. A raisingor lateral pressure on the shuttle due to guiding by the picking stickno longer occurs since the new type of leading end no longer causes theshuttle to be pressed upwards or downwards but the shuttle is guided ina straight line.

Since a pointed tip is no longer provided the picking stick is notsubject to wear and tear because it is not pushed upwards by the tip.The securing of the picking stick to the batten can no longer beloosened since it is no longer possible for a faulty guiding by thepicking stick and friction thereof to be transmitted to the shuttle.During the two-directional shuttle throw a similar large surface isalways available on the shuttle and this is of great importance for thesmooth running of the loom since the state of the shuttle is always thesame. The shuttle is no longer able to brake or burn in the shuttleguideway and no faulty throws result.

When the extended removable rubber insertion is in place there is novibration when the shuttle makes impact with the shuttle box swell. Theforce of impact is uniform and regular because the condition of theshuttle is not altered due to the large leading end thereon. The shuttledoes not rebound when new picking sticks are fitted since the surface ofapplication is larger and it rolls off the rounded head.

The speed of rotation and the efliciency of the loom may be considerablyincreased since there are considerably fewer disturbances and smoothworking is ensured. The omission of the shuttle tip for collecting andguiding means that there is no over-heating and the tip can no longer beloosened. Wear and tear on the materials coming into contact isconsiderably reduced and the loom thus has a uniform stroke and runssmoothly.

I claim:

1. In a two-directionally thrown loom shuttle for a high speed weavingloom, the improvement for reducing wear and tear of said shuttle whichcomprises (a) providing a loom shuttle having a pair of conical endswith an essentially ball-shaped head at each conical end for improvedcooperation of the batten and the picking stick of a weaving loom withsaid shuttle during throwing of the shuttle and (b) extending the rearWall of the shuttle by a pair of slider extension means which form incombination with said rear wall an elongated continuous slider surfaceextending at each end of the shuttle a substantial distance beyond thehead of each conical end, each of said pair of extensions having asemi-elliptical leading end and having a thickness, measured from therear wall, which is substantially less than the radius of the adjacentball-shaped conical end.

2. A two-directionally thrown loom shuttle for a high speed weavingloom, said shuttle comprising a pair of conical ends and having a fiatrear guiding wall, said shuttle being improved for reducing wear andtear of said shuttle by additionally comprising (a) a pair ofball-shaped heads, one at each end of said pair of conical ends, forimproved cooperation of the batten and picking stick of a weaving loomwith the shuttle during the throwing of the shuttle and (b) a pair ofslider extension means which form in combination with said rear wall anelongated continuous slider surface extending at each end of the shuttlea substantial distance beyond the head of each conical end, each of saidpair of extensions having a semi-elliptical leading end and having athickness, measured from the rear wall, which is substantially less thanthe radius of the adjacent ballshaped conical end.

3. The shuttle according to claim 2 wherein the rear wall of the shuttleis provided with at least one recess at each end of the shuttle forreceiving and retaining a slider extension means in the form of a pairof separately insertable and attachable extension means and wherein eachof said extension means is attached in a corresponding adjacent recessto the shuttle by fastener means.

4. The shuttle according to claim 2 wherein the pair of elongatedextension means and the rear wall of the shuttle are constructed in onepiece in the form of a continuous slider wall.

5. The shuttle according to claim 2 wherein the pair of elongatedextension means are separately attachable and detachable extension meansand said pair of ball-shaped headed conical ends are separatelyattachable and detachable ends.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 372,239 10/1887 Root 139-196574,112 12/1896 Railton 139-196 1,527,779 2/1925 Boiltel 1391251,730,931 10/ 1929 Giehler 139-197 1,805,090 5/1931 Hills 1391961,861,593 6/1932 Christoph 139196 2,352,366 6/1944 Brown 1391962,423,917 7/1947 Wilson 139196 3,144,884 8/1964 Svaty 139--125 FOREIGNPATENTS 195,143 12/1919 Canada.

500,888 6/1930 Germany.

701,364 1/ 1941 Germany.

160,444 6/ 1921 Great Britain.

484,335 5/ 1938 Great Britain.

659,173 10/ 1951 Great Britain.

767,030 6/ 1954 Great Britain.

260,686 10/1928 Italy.

246,650 10/ 1947 Switzerland.

ROBERT R. MACKEY, Acting Primary Examiner.

DONALD W. PARKER, MERVIN STEIN, J. KEE CHI,

Assistant Examiners.

1. IN A TWO-DIRECTIONALLY THROWN LOOM SHUTTLE FOR A HIGH SPEED WEAVINGLOOM, THE IMPROVEMENT FOR REDUCING WEAR AND TEAR OF SAID SHUTTLE WHICHCOMPRISES (A) PROVIDING A LOOM SHUTTLE HAVING A PAIR OF CONICAL ENDSWITH AN ESSENTIALLY BALL-SHAPED HEAD AT EACH CONICAL END FOR IMPROVEDCOOPERATION OF THE BATTEN AND THE PICKING STICK OF A WEAVING LOOM WITHSAID SHUTTLE DURING THROWING OF THE SHUTTLE AND (B) EXTENDING THE REARWALL OF THE SHUTTLE BY A PAIR OF SLIDER EXTENSION MEANS WHICH FORM INCOMBINATION WITH SAID REAR WALL AN ELONGATED CONTINUOUS SLIDER SURFACEEXTENDING AT EACH END OF THE SHUTTLE A SUBSTANTIAL DISTANCE BEYOND THEHEAD OF EACH CONICAL END, EACH OF SAID PAIR OF EXTENSIONS HAVING ASEMI-ELLIPTICAL LEADING END AND HAVING A THICKNESS, MEASURED FROM THEREAR WALL, WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN THE RADIUS OF THE ADJACENTBALL-SHAPED CONICAL END.